COOKING "TURKEY" question.

[Sourdough]

Is there any way to cook turkey other than slow roasting..?? I one tried frying turkey breast and it was hard as dry leather.

 

[joel]

You can do anything you do with chickens, with turkey.
Sounds like you are leaving the turkey in the oil to long.
It should be crispy skin on the outside & moist meat on the inside.

 

[elkhound]

debone it ad run it through the grinder. if no grinder..debone cut in small section/chunks and dip in flour and egg and quick fry in the pan...or you can leave off egg/flour and just cut it in thin strips and 'stir fry ' it.

 

[LadyLocust]

I think it depends on how you are wanting it and what parts. White meat, best in butter can tolerate a little more heat if sautéing. If frying I would check grease temp. Dark meat, a little lower heat for a little longer. The test for poultry is: it’s done when it’s not spongy when pressed with a fork. (If that makes sense via internet).

 

[Amish Heart]

Of course roasting it. But I cook alot of turkeys, and sometimes I cut the meat off the bones (raw) and boil it. Then boil the carcass for more meat and broth. Or cut the meat off and run it through a hand grinder. If it's a fresh kill, I chill it for a few days to let the meat settle before cutting and cooking. It's also good cut and chunked, then set in spices of your choice, and put on a stick with veggies for shishkabob.

 

[Amish Heart]

I should add that if it's wild turkey, I'd just take the breast meat off. The legs and thighs aren't worth doing except for animal food, or if you're desperate. It's pretty muscular on a wild turkey. Home grown is not bad.

 

[Weedygarden]

Breast meat is always dry but can be cooked to be more moist. It can be injected
Are you cooking a whole turkey? Or are you cooking turkey parts?

I know you said you are not roasting it, but if you were to, if you cook it with the breast down, the breast meat will not be as dry. Cooking a turkey in a roasting pan with a lid helps too. They sell roasters that are open.

Something that is very popular is deep frying and people have big pots that they fill with oil and heat over an open flame on special cookers run by propane. You don't want to do that in the house or even too close to
the house. There have been house fires from these.

There are several models available.

 

[Amish Heart]

Our neighbor's mom just dispatched a number of double breasted Toms last weekend. She canned some of the meat, but with the breast meat, she sliced it and froze it sliced to go on the grill for a quick supper.

 

[sonya123]

Deep fried turkey is the best, but you have to get a small one or it won't fit in the deep fryer or cook properly. I put cajune seasoning on it
But the oil is expensive, you need peanut oil or a mix of peanut and veg oil

 

[Magus]

Cut it in chunks parboil what you think you'll use for an hour, place it in tinfoil with the usual herbs and spices, and grill that bad boy in bacon grease! Saves turkey, and tastes great!

 

[Tim Horton]

"Tiger Sausage"
Grind and mix well equal parts turkey, home raised goose breast, home raised meat rabbit.. Season with summer sausage seasoning mix, form into a log, about a large banana size.. Wrap in an open top tin foil boat, smoke until a well done internal temp of 180F or so.. Enjoy with tea, crackers, cheese, mustard...

 

[joel]

The Big Easy Total Air Fryer .
Has anyone used a Big easy air fryer.
Someone in my group wants to fry a turkey, but has no equipment, & has never done this.
It is my understanding that oil fryers are dangers in the wrong hands, like a loaded gun.
Burned people & house to the ground. So I think to keep everyone from being in the hospital for the holidays.
I should look into air fryers, which are good for other thing, like smoking meat.
What do you know about the Big easy air fryer.
https://www.charbroil.com/the-big-easy-total-air-fryer-bundle

 

[Weedygarden]

The Big Easy Total Air Fryer .
Has anyone used a Big easy air fryer.
Someone in my group wants to fry a turkey, but has no equipment, & has never done this.
It is my understanding that oil fryers are dangers in the wrong hands, like a loaded gun.
Burned people & house to the ground. So I think to keep everyone from being in the hospital for the holidays.
I should look into air fryers, which are good for other thing, like smoking meat.
What do you know about the Big easy air fryer.
https://www.charbroil.com/the-big-easy-total-air-fryer-bundle

I don't know about that fryer. An oven with a convection setting is the same as an air fryer. Many of us probably have air fryers, but they are probably also too small to hold a turkey, with the exception of a regular sized oven with a convection setting.

The fryer you posted about is $180. Seems like a lot of money to spend for roasting a turkey once a year, but you may use it more than that.

 

[joel]

I don't know about that fryer. An oven with a convection setting is the same as an air fryer. Many of us probably air fryers, but they are probably also too small to hold a turkey, with the exception of a regular sized oven with a convection setting.

The fryer you posted about is $180. Seems like a lot of money to spend for roasting a turkey once a year, but you may use it more than that.

I agree. However it is easier to spend the money & use it to make twenty chicken wings every few months, then to hurt someone's feelings or watch them burn the house down.
I never thought of using a propane air fryer, did not know they made them until some one had a bright ideal.

 

[Canon29]

My #1 favorite is to spatchcock it and smoke it indirect in the kettle grill with a nice flavorful dry rub- this one is some sort of black garlic/rosemary thyme Mashup.

Using an oak/hickory lump charcoal in this case. It's super flavorful and juicy- It's wayyy better then drying it out in the oven and i even prefer it to deep fried.

If I'm in the woods and killed a wild one fresh- I sear it over the open flame to try and lock the moisture in, then slow roast it slightly angled downward with My canteen cup positioned to catch the juices so I can baste it with a sprig of pine.

 

[Amish Heart]

I've already cooked six turkeys the past two weeks and they're in the freezer in small portions for lunchmeat. I've got a whole turkey in the freezer to cook for Thanksgiving.

 

[Hardcalibres]

This would work for turkey:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sous_vide

The challenge may be getting a big enough bag and big enough Sous Vide pot.........but it is a good match to the specific challenges of cooking Turkey.

The intent is to cook the item evenly, ensuring that the inside is properly cooked without overcooking the outside, and to retain moisture.

 

[Pearl]

Old fashioned slow roast..the only way to go!!

 

[Sourdough]

The cabin only has a (1) ONE burner propane powered camp stove. That is why I tried frying the breast meat. Was a disaster.

Old fashioned slow roast..the only way to go!!

 

[Weedygarden]

The cabin only has a (1) ONE burner propane powered camp stove. That is why I tried frying the breast meat. Was a disaster.

I wonder if one of the camp ovens that I showed, on top of the camp stove would be better?

I was thinking earlier today how living off grid sure has its challenges, but with the right set up, can be done.

 

[Hardcalibres]

I wonder if one of the camp ovens that I showed, on top of the camp stove would be better?

I was thinking earlier today how living off grid sure has its challenges, but with the right set up, can be done.

Agreed.

A big cast iron dutch oven would be worth a try.

Considering 100% of the heat will be from the bottom, I would think a trivet to keep the turkey off the bottom of the oven would be essential.

If it looks like it is cooking unevenly, then half way through cooking, you could flip the turkey.


Most of my experience with dutch ovens has been using coals from a campfire (like my avatar). When doing that, we use coals on the lid to ensure at least 50% of the heat is coming down from the top.

 

[Patchouli]

How big is the turkey?
Daughter in law put one in their smoker last year. I didn’t care for it.
If you’re out at a campground or away from electricity, have you ever roasted one on a rotisserie over fire? Yeah, me neither.

 

[Hardcalibres]

.......
If you’re out at a campground or away from electricity, have you ever roasted one on a rotisserie over fire? Yeah, me neither.

I have done quite a bit of that.

The key thing is to cook the outside and the inside at the same rate/speed......otherwise you will just incinerate the outside, long before the inside gets anywhere near cooked.

In my experience, successful spit roasting can only be done over coals.....don't expose the meat to flames. Setup two fires....one to produce coals.....and the other burning just those coals with the rotisserie mounted meat above them.

 

[Pearl]

The cabin only has a (1) ONE burner propane powered camp stove. That is why I tried frying the breast meat. Was a disaster.

I've gotta go with Weedygarden on this one! A camp oven on the stove. Or maybe add another option at the cabin, some kind of oven. You could cook bigger things like turkey and have leftovers!!

 

[DrHenley]

I let my wife handle cooking domestic turkeys, but I have a great recipe for cooking wild turkey breasts which are challenging because they tend to be very dry and tough. It should work fine for domestic turkey, but I don't know whether it would work for whole turkeys.

Coffee Rub Wild Turkey Breast
Recipe is for two large turkey breast filets (breasts from one big turkey in other words)
(this is also my current recipe for venison, except I cook it to "medium rare."

1: Marinate your turkey breasts for two hours in whatever marinade you prefer (I prefer Hoover Sauce)

2: Peel 6 garlic cloves
(or 3 elephant garlic cloves) Use more if you like garlic

3: Mince the garlic

4: Add 2 rounded tablespoons of ground coffee
(I use decaf, but that's up to you)

5: Add 2 heaping tablespoons of brown sugar

6: Add 1 level tablespoon of salt

7: Add 2 heaping teaspoons of Italian seasoning

8: Add 2 level teaspoons of ground pepper

9: Mix rub well with a fork or whisk.

10: Remove meat from marinade, drain, pat dry with paper towel

11: Coat with rub and massage vigorously.

12: Keep patting more rub on the breasts until you've used it all up. Try to have an even coat all over.

13: Cook on covered grill, medium fire, turning once, until meat thermometer says "medium". (I use a beef button thermometer)
OR
13: Cook in an oven at 450 degrees using a broiling pan.

14: Take it off the grill (or out of the oven) and let it rest for 5 minutes.